EP007 Kansas Reno County Museum and Historical Society - David Reed

In this CHRISTMAS Episode, Sean meets with Mr. David Reed, the Chief Curator and “Story Teller of Truth”, from the Reno County Museum and Historical Society located in Hutchinson, Kansas.

David shared a Hutch News newspaper article from January 2, 1873 which described one of the first Christmas celebrations in Hutchinson.

We discuss the great State Fair controversy and how President Taft helped resolve the issue in 1913.

David shared that both Reno County and City of Hutchinson are 150 years old and how the area will celebrate this in 2022.

Sean Thomas goes ga-ga over the insane coolness of the Strataca mine that the Society manages and where the Society sponsors and annual 5k run, a 10k run, and the Tour de Salt bicycle race, all of which are 650 feet underground! There is nowhere else like this across the world!   There is also a conference center and an annual Murder Mystery theatre that takes place.

We learn about David’s background, his passion for history, and his belief that museums not only curate history but also culture.

David reviews how a new style of exhibit is being implemented into the museum and is forecasting completion sometime next year.

We discuss the annual Halloween event which is live-streamed and the annual Christmas in the Courtyard specifically designed for the community to relax and meet the museum staff.

We discuss a project where over 100 oral histories provided by local African Americans in the county were collected and archived, and how the Society is planning to make this treasure-trove of history available to the public.

We learned about the life and times of Solomon Butler, a great man hailing from Hutchinson; who changed Reno County forever and for the better.  More to come about Solomon from a Professor at Dubuque University planning to publish a book about Solomon’s life.  

We learned about Ms. Pat Mitchell, a local Historian and renaissance woman who died much too early and whose life’s work was donated to the Reno County Historical Society and is a huge collection; rivaling the number of artifacts the Museum had prior to her generous gift. The Society is working to make this totally and historically impressive collection available to the public.

We find out how Reno County was named after General Reno, and how Hutchinson was named after C.C. Hutchinson.

We learned about the day the Reno County Courthouse sank into the Salt Mine and needed to be replaced, and how the Museum has an undeteriorated 150-year-old pickle in a jar!

We learn that Reno County Kansas IS where Morton Salt comes from!

We discussed the two National Historic Districts in the area and the Business College building.

We learn about the founding of the Reno County Museum and how it evolved into the facilities it occupies today.

We learn about Ben Blanchard and the founding of South Hutchinson and the discovery of salt underground.

David and Sean had fun during their time together and we learned that the Reno County Museum and Historical Society (renocomuseum.org)  is without a doubt one of our great Nation’s Preservation Oaks!